Scrap Book
ca. 1910 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The earliest printed use of the word 'scrapbook' is in 1825. Scrapbooks may be said to have their origins in the commonplace books popular with adults from at least the 16th century: these books contained a mixture of observations, recipes, poetry, letters etc, which might be printed or hand written, and the pages were sometimes also decorated with pictorial elements.
Scrapbooks for use by children became really popular from about the 1870s, when colour printing became more affordable and readily available. This meant that in addition to cutting illustrations from magazines and books, and pasting in souvenirs, the scrapbook compiler could easily and quite cheaply buy colourful and professionally produced pictorial 'scraps' or 'reliefs' showing a wide variety of subjects. These had originated in Germany in the 1800s as printed decorations for confectionery, and began to be collected as souvenirs of various occasions. Among the more popular subjects for children were flowers, birds and animals, nursery rhyme figures and seasonal outdoor scenes such as children harvesting or skating.
The scrapbook has had something of a revival in recent years, partly in connection with the availability of digital and computer-accessible images, and is often created in digital form.
Scrapbooks for use by children became really popular from about the 1870s, when colour printing became more affordable and readily available. This meant that in addition to cutting illustrations from magazines and books, and pasting in souvenirs, the scrapbook compiler could easily and quite cheaply buy colourful and professionally produced pictorial 'scraps' or 'reliefs' showing a wide variety of subjects. These had originated in Germany in the 1800s as printed decorations for confectionery, and began to be collected as souvenirs of various occasions. Among the more popular subjects for children were flowers, birds and animals, nursery rhyme figures and seasonal outdoor scenes such as children harvesting or skating.
The scrapbook has had something of a revival in recent years, partly in connection with the availability of digital and computer-accessible images, and is often created in digital form.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Bound paper and card, with writing, drawing and decoupage |
| Brief description | Scrap book/ note book, bound paper and card, about an imaginary family, compiled by Margaret Bolton in England, ca. 1914-1915. |
| Physical description | Scrap book compiled in a note book of portrait proportions, with 154 pages of ruled paper, bound in black cloth-covered boards. It concerns the very wealthy imaginary couple Joy Margaret and Maurice Duglass Everth and their numerous children and other relatives, many of whom have names in use in the compiler's own family. The book contains a number of illustrations cut from magazines etc (some additionally coloured in), but said to represent various characters in the family. Margaret also created (in character as Joy, the narrator) lists which included the various rooms in her house, with their colour schemes; the staff; the children and their appearance and characteristics; notes on who was staying at the house; and plans of the house and grounds. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Unique |
| Marks and inscriptions | 'Joy Margaret Everth / and / Maurice Duglass / Everth' (Book plate of imaginary couple on inside of front board) |
| Credit line | Given by Anne Phillips |
| Object history | The book was compiled by the donor's aunt, Margaret Ellen Mary Bolton, born 23 July 1905. Margaret was the eldest of the four children of Alfred William Bolton and his wife Margaret Geraldine (née Haydon): after Alfred Bolton's death in 1915 she and her younger siblings Elwood Maurice William (b. 1908), Alan Thorley (b. 1912) and Helen Patricia (Patsy, b. 1913) were split up and cared for by various relatives. The scrapbook seems to have been Margaret Bolton's idealised version of family life, and may have been something which helped her to cope with events after her father's death. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | The earliest printed use of the word 'scrapbook' is in 1825. Scrapbooks may be said to have their origins in the commonplace books popular with adults from at least the 16th century: these books contained a mixture of observations, recipes, poetry, letters etc, which might be printed or hand written, and the pages were sometimes also decorated with pictorial elements. Scrapbooks for use by children became really popular from about the 1870s, when colour printing became more affordable and readily available. This meant that in addition to cutting illustrations from magazines and books, and pasting in souvenirs, the scrapbook compiler could easily and quite cheaply buy colourful and professionally produced pictorial 'scraps' or 'reliefs' showing a wide variety of subjects. These had originated in Germany in the 1800s as printed decorations for confectionery, and began to be collected as souvenirs of various occasions. Among the more popular subjects for children were flowers, birds and animals, nursery rhyme figures and seasonal outdoor scenes such as children harvesting or skating. The scrapbook has had something of a revival in recent years, partly in connection with the availability of digital and computer-accessible images, and is often created in digital form. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | B.254-2009 |
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| Record created | March 3, 2010 |
| Record URL |
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